Sarah Seltzer has interviewed Donald Quist over at Flavorwire as part of their new series, The Sweetest Debut. They talk about his upcoming essay collection, Harbors, which comes out next week along with other things such as the Western canon, current books and movies, fashion, and Elaine Benes.

Suspended between continents and cultures, Donald Quist charts the forceful undercurrents of an American identity. Through these essays Quist explores feelings of oppression and alienation as he wrestles with a single act of violence in a Washington, D.C. suburb, racial tensions in a rural South Carolina town, and the welcome anonymity of crowded Bangkok streets. These personal narratives are rich with Quist’s experience growing up as a person of color caught between parents, socioeconomic classes, and the countries he calls home.